Step 6: Arduino Sketch

Step 7: Schematic

Schematic is attached to this step as an Adobe PDF file. This was the original sheep file, but I set the scarves up using the same method. If you add...

This was my first time working with an Arduino Lilypad. I have been wanting to try something that dealt with soft circuits for awhile now. This project is what I came up with. The concept is based off my friend Ethan Dicks from theFusefactory.org's emergent Sheep Sculpture project.

The Lilypad Interactive Passion Sensing Scarf works like so:

Scarf number one being worn by someone walking alone will light up with the color Blue for Lonely. When the wearer of scarf number two joins up with number one, the two scarves will sense each other and then light up Red for Love.

Future plans for capacitance touch: which will allow the colors to Pulsate for Passion if one wearer touches the other wearers scarf.

Below is a video so you can see how it works. Please note this is a work in progress, I only have the electronics embedded into one scarf right now. I am still working on and perfecting these. Please fill free to share your ideas!

This circuit will damage your arduino. It has an arduino output pin effectively shunting current across the LED. With a resistor of 56R and a voltage of 5V this will cause a current of 90mA to flow through the arduino pin. The limit for such current, that is the value where it will start causing damage is 40mA, so it is almost twice overloaded. Even if you run the lilypad at 3v3 you are still going to pull 59mA and exceed the damage threshold. To keep it safe the 56R resistor has to be at least 125R but better would be 133R.You might not notice the damage straight away but exceeding the manufacturer's ratings is a sure way to shorten the like of any electronic component.

have you heard of light wires? Ive seen them a lot at raves and night clubs. you can program them to go off on certain cycles. if you could weave it into the scarf your entire scarf could light up that chosen color.or even just the patterns. its a very flexable wire and there are many types on the market. its basically fiber optics. i think it would go very well with your scarfs

Love it love it. I am re-blogging this to my site today! Great job and thank you for sharing your code. The hardest part in teaching newcomers sometimes is that people hide all their code and then they become discouraged when they have to learn it fast. This gets them up and running making something quickly... Thank you!

hmmm... I got a mind flex for christmas (EEG games are cool) and i think maybe if you were to add some sort of EEG/brainwave reader so that the LED would shine according to the actual mood of a person, that'd be cool. Or have it work like a mood ring does, the body temperature! and since the scarf is super close contact, then that'd be no problem!

I think a hat would work better for the EEG idea tho. closer to the brain and all...

I like the idea, but why an IR transmitter? Especially with something like a scarf, it would be limited by outside light and by lack of line of sight. What about a cheap RF transmitter kit? Longer range and no worry about line of sight, plus you can get a kit for about 5$.

Awesome! I've been wanting to make something similar ever since I saw the 8-bit Dynamic Life Shirt on thinkgeek. I think this is a very sweet gift and far more subtle than the row of giant hearts that light up :D